The personal papers of Dean Smith have been donated to UNC-Chapel Hill’s Wilson Library, where fans will be able to peruse handwritten notes and gain new insights into the famous basketball coach.
The university announced the gift Thursday. The collection includes 12,000 items that belonged to the late UNC coach, who died in 2015 at the age of 83.
Visitors to the library will be able to see scrapbooks made by Smith’s parents, marking milestones in his early career. There’s a letter from Smith explaining why he wouldn’t run against Jesse Helms for the U.S. Senate. And there’s a telegram from Smith’s most famous former player, Michael Jordan, on the occasion of Smith reaching 877 wins, when he surpassed the record of University of Kentucky Coach Adolph Rupp.